By Peggy Ratusz
My song-sister, Ellen Trnka was the person who helped me get started and who made my move to the area easier as I worked to make a name for myself around here some 17 years ago. Because of Ellen’s openness, I now pay it forward in her honor. Fielding calls from newly transplanted artists makes me happy and has become part of my reputation.
One such transplant who emailed me on my birthday in 2016 was Nicole lúnd. She’d just moved here from New York City & was researching Asheville’s blues music happenings. That email led to our working together on a holiday variety show & my helping her with a couple of bookings.
With an education in Music Industry Studies from Appalachian State, singer songwriter lÚnd (artist’s moniker), holds down a full time job while still managing to create and produce her own music. And now, she is about to release her highly anticipated and remarkable debut record “Right This Time.”
A logistics person in her day job, she handles distribution of anesthesia machines and ventilators for a medical device company. The demands of that position did not deter her from recording the album during this pandemic. Paramount in her decision to forge ahead was the fact that scheduling the players was easier, especially since they are all notable instrumentalists and singers, who normally would have had regular, robust touring schedules.
To discover where this energy and know-how began, I ask her about her background and childhood growing up in Charlotte, NC. “My father was an architect and artist and my mom worked from home keeping his books and tending to our needs.” With an older sister and younger brother, lúnd says she’s “proud to represent as ‘middle child’.”
“I sang along with Aretha Franklin, Etta James and Bonnie Raitt when I was young. I consider them my voice teachers.”
So at 9 years, she decided to audition for the Charlotte Children’s Choir and got in. From grades 6-12, she attended a magnet school for the arts where she majored in voice and photography.
With her father’s encouragement and support, she interned for and headed up the street team for Derek Truck’s band when she was a teen.
At 17 she moved to Boone, NC to attend Appalachian State majoring in the aforementioned Music Industry Studies. She spent 2 years in Atlanta “observing the music scene” and the next 10 dabbling in a variety of music-related activities in The Big Apple.
“I struggled with stage fright for a very long time. I still don’t feel 100% comfortable on stage. For one of my first college performances, I held my eyes closed throughout the performance. So it’s been a slow process for me.”
Getting into that college jazz ensemble made dealing with her fears a little easier; primarily because the director “saw something in me and gave me a chance. I just had to work to achieve my goals and he gave me the opportunity to do that work.”
The ripple effect these leadership roles created, manifested partner and mentorships with notable players and songwriters; namely guitarist Paul Olson from the band Scrapomatic. Scrapomatic’s lead singer is Tedeschi-Trucks Band’s lead backing vocalist, Mike Mattison. Along with Mark Rivers, also a TTB backing vocalist, both appear on several tracks on Nicole’s upcoming release.
She met and became friends with Atlanta based and acclaimed drummer Yonrico Scott, (Royal Southern Brotherhood, Earl Klugh, Derek Trucks Band) who mentored her until his sad and untimely death just over a year ago.
I took notes while listening to the tracks she emailed me ahead of our interview, and I wrote down the words: “mood album.” It was cool that she referred to them in the interview without my prompting, as a collection of ‘moods.’ Her lyrics are sparse and yet full of meaning. The melodies, style and rhythm come together effectively to tell a story between the lines. Listeners will identify; they’ll fill in the spaces with their own reflections.
The easy rolling rock-feel title track, “Right This Time” evokes Tedeschi but its lÚnd’s honey drenched phrasing that makes it her own. “Here I am babe, here for the taking. Don’t let me down; be the man I need now; arms wide open. But please, don’t let me be wrong ‘bout you… I wanna be right this time.”
The straight 8’s feel of, “Don’t You Leave Me” has a thumping Amy Winehouse throwback sound as the backing vocals take it an octave higher on the hook. Nicole’s vocal trills are a thrill. It’s a beckoning-ultimatum-song. It’s a “hey get back here, we’re not done yet” vibe that empowers as it pleads.
“Not Comin Home” is a haunting finger-picking dirge that confirms the end of a relationship that even after a long period, had not developed enough to make her want to stay or even explain. “I’m not comin’ home. No use lookin’ I’m out of sight, too far for you to fly. When the day breaks I’ll be gone. And you never thought I’d be the one to move on.”
I was honored to hear these tracks before the mixing and mastering process. If they sound this good now, we’re all in for a gratifying listening experience when they all drop later this year.
Each track is treated with a unique and refined melody; well-placed harmonies, and certainly musicianship of the highest quality.
With clarity and reflection, and toward the end of our interview, lÚnd articulates: “I’ve been such an active observer that it’s taken me a while to come into my own.”
Right This Time is produced by Tyler “Falcon” Greenwell (Susan Tedeschi, Colonel Bruce Hampton, The Wood Brothers); Engineered by Jim Georgeson and Dowell Gandy from Echo Mountain Studio. The extraordinary players include local teacher and sessions guitarist, Brandon Townsend; guitarist Dave Yoke (Susan Tedeschi, Dr. John, Scrapomatic); on bass is Brandon Boone (Tedeschi-Trucks Band); and New Orleans-based drummer, Isaac Eady. Along with Mike Mattison and Mark Rivers from Tedeschi Trucks band, Gabe Dixon rounds out her backing vocalists.
I enthusiastically recommend you to follow lÚnd on Instagram: instagram.com/lund.music/
And to visit her newly minted website: lund-music.com
Peggy Ratusz is a vocal coach, song interpreter, and songwriter. For vocal coaching email her at [email protected]